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Scandal Review: Power Corrupts

Scandal dropped bombs and shocked my face off tonight. My eyes are still wide open and, as is often the case with this show, I'm having trouble forming a complete sentence because so many sentences are flying into my head at once.

Total. Game Changer.

On "Nobody Likes Babies," some alliances were tested and renewed while others were broken, perhaps for good.

Just as the doors began to close, Huck squeaked in with Charlie and Hollis and saved Hollis' life. If, that is, Hollis agrees not to take the deal being offered to him by David Rosen. As long as he doesn't take the deal and rat out the others involved in election rigging, Huck will protect him. If, however, he decides to talk, Huck won't get in Charlie's way.

Hollis is now one of the safest men alive, which seems to be how it always works out, right?

Meanwhile, Olivia wasted no time putting it together that Verna was the one who hired Becky since Verna was the one who had dropped the tip about Hollis and the burner phone. Verna's quest for power, and for protecting the power of her own legacy, cost people their lives. Killing Fitz, to her, was a way to end their dilemma.

She gambled on the fact that she would be dead before anyone discovered that she was the one who hired Becky, and she lost. But she couldn't die without clearing her conscience.

By telling Fitz what they did and why, she robbed the others of the chance to tell him and sully her name. This is a woman for whom reputation was everything. Confessing her sins to Fitz was her way of still looking out for herself above all. But she underestimated Fitz' reaction to being given such news. Because he killed her after hearing it.

Yes.

Fitz killed Verna. The President is a murderer.

As he was walking toward the hospital door, I had a quick back and forth in my head about whether he was about to do what it seemed like he was about to do and then he did it. He just went over to the dying woman and pulled off her oxygen mask.

Whether he did it to protect Olivia, Mellie and Cyrus, to protect himself, or because he was shot in the head, (or, most likely a combination of reasons) we'll likely know soon enough. But he did it. And I'm still shocked by it.

Now to change gears, I loved the parallel scenes in tonight's episode. The first Fitz-Olivia scene had him begging her to wait for him. Once she saw Edison again and realized that she would never have "painful, difficult, devastating, love" with him, she knew she would wait for Fitz for as long as it took. But by that point, he was crushed by what he had learned. And he used that information to crush Olivia. Their final scene together was a heartbreaking mirror of their conversation in Cyrus' office.

The Mellie-Fitz reunion was also heartbreaking, even though I don't think it was supposed to be. He's correct in that she's always shown him her true intentions. (And even though Olivia has, too, he has no way of knowing that right now.) Mellie has stood by him through his affair which, until he murdered someone, was the worst thing he could have done. While there's is a marriage of a shared interest in power and political station, I'm interested in seeing how this plays out. Will he still want a divorce in three episodes? Are they capable of real tenderness with one another?

Marriages, it seems, were key tonight.

Cyrus nearly had his own husband killed to prevent James from testifying, but in the end, he couldn't do it. He loves James more than he loves power, but his speech about how he wanted to be President was so powerful I believed Cyrus capable of having Charlie complete the job.

Cyrus: [to James] I wasn't made to be the Chief of Staff. Do you know what I was made to be? I was made to be the President of the United States. I was made to lead the nation. I was made to ensure this country's place in the world for generations to come. I would've been great at that. I have the stones. I have backbone. I have the will. I would have been a great President. But guess what, I'm fairly short, and I'm not so pretty, and I really like having sex with men, so instead of being President of this land, that I love, I get to be the guy behind the President of the United States, and sure I have power. I influence decisions. I help steer the country. But I'll never be in the history books. My name will never be on an airport or a doctrine. Being the guy behind the guy is as far as my road goes. | permalink

What this makes me hope for is a scene or an episode from the time when Cyrus first latched on to Fitz. When and where did they meet? How did they become friends? Clearly, Cyrus saw Fitz as the ticket to the power he loves.

James loves Cyrus more than he loves either their daughter or himself. Enough to perjure himself in front of the Grand Jury and derail David Rosen's case about the election rigging in Defiance.

Poor David Rosen cannot catch a break in court. Or with Abby. Despite discovering his confession of love on the CDs, I knew she would betray David after Harrison's reminder that they are Gladiators, but I was hoping she hadn't needed to and that someone else had gotten to the card first. I guess when Abby said "over a cliff" she really meant it, despite what it seemed earlier this season.

So, TV Fanatics, what did you think of "Nobody Likes Babies?" Have you had a chance to pick your jaws up off the floor about Fitz killing Verna?

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Nia•February 08, 2013 11:52

The path this series has taken is a betrayal to the lead character, Olivia. First, when we met the character Olivia, in the initial promos, and the first episode, she was introduced as someone who we could rely on, to rely on her instincts. We learned early she was someone who wore the "White hat" someone who always worked towards good, honesty, and integrity. This is no longer the case. And, it will take a miracle for her to be reunited with the qualities we were sold in the first few episodes. Characters grow as we have seen in other series on television but they always stay true to their core qualities. Olivia, is not as desirable as she was because she is no longer unique, or different from the others in her midst. She's just like them which kills her originality and courage. In the series Damages, for example, we saw that the lead character was not honest, she was bad from the start, whose going to trust her, but we were fascinated by her darkness, because the people she went up against practiced evil with a wider brush, and we wanted her to succeed because it took someone like her to think the way they did and bring them down. Not so in the case of Scandal, Olivia has been sullied, and we no longer see her in white, morally, and that has seriously injured her credibility with me because I no longer can root for her.

Nia•February 08, 2013 11:49

The path this series has taken is a betrayal to the lead character, Olivia. First, when we met the character Olivia, in the initial promos, and the first episode, she was introduced as someone who we could rely on, to rely on her instincts. We learned early she was someone who wore the "White hat" someone who always worked towards good, honesty, and integrity. This is no longer the case. And, it will take a miracle for her to be reunited with the qualities we were sold in the first few episodes. Characters grow as we have seen in other series on television but they always stay true to their core qualities. Olivia, is not as desirable as she was because she is no longer unique, or different from the others in her midst. She's just like them which kills her originality and courage. In the series Damages, for example, we saw that the lead character was not honest, she was bad from the start, whose going to trust her, but we were fascinated by her darkness, because the people she went up against practiced evil with a wider brush, and we wanted her to succeed because it took someone like her to think the way they did and bring them down. Not so in the case of Scandal, Olivia has been sullied, and we no longer see her in white, morally, and that has seriously injured her credibility with me because I no longer can root for her. I can understand the president doing what he did because he still isn't himself, and we were told he might suffer some personality changes, after all there are cases where people suffer head injuries and experience a more violent personality or other changes for the worst, but we had no such warning about Olivia to explain her past behavior, agreeing to tamper with an election. It would have been better if she had been brought in to fix what they had done wrong, since she is a fixer, not have her agree to do wrong, she wears the "White hat" so how could you let her do that. I think until a serious effort is made to redeem her, viewers will drift from this show, personally I feel the lead character has been betrayed with this story line. It's disorienting and sad. I loved this show very, very, much. Now, I will stick with just reading the reviews. I can't stand watching what they (the writers) have done to her... betraying your lead character's integrity is like offering Clorox to clean up a stain but giving the person wet wipes. It sucks!

Marcus•February 08, 2013 10:48

@ Nele thats kind of the same i feel. I want someone to root for in a series and im striggling who to root for in Scandal. I like Davids character but he is written as someone you just know will get screwed over and over again. He is just a bother for our flawed heroes team who needs to be squashed as he might actually try to do the right thing. I just jope the writers will find a way to let Olivia be a real moral compass again not just by her words but also by her actions.

Nele•February 08, 2013 10:36

I love watching the show but I've to say one thing: I just hate the whole team, including Olivia. I'm really, really rooting for David, because seriously somehow everyone in this team got so unlikable in this season. Not the unlikable like "flawed hero", but I really can't stand this people. I guess I keep watching, because I hope that David/justice will win in the end...

Marcus•February 08, 2013 08:50

@Sa'ad702 Well there still is a difference between being Commander in Chief and actually killing someone with your own hands.

I was very much in shock and awe with this episode. Learning that Verna was behind this whole thing was very intense. I somehow thought it was Mellie or that she had some part in it. Maybe she does. We see Verna catching Olitz at it, so maybe she goes to Mellie. Its still a possibility!!! Don't know why people are shocked with this whole thing that Fitz killed Verna, he kills hundreds of people when he sends his Seals to dispatch dictators and the likes. Seriously. He was just so pissed that everyone he 'trusted' was involved in giving him something that he didn't deserve. I don't like Fitz much, he is an arrogant piece of work. I sincerely hope that somehow he looses the re election.

But overall Scandal is one of the most intense series on TV right now and definately in my top5 ( along with Homeland/Suits/Elementary and The Walking Dead ).Btw very nice review , you can tell that you actually are really into the series and not just write about it.

MARLA•February 08, 2013 07:26

OOOOOOOOMG BEST SHOW EVER I CANÂ´T BELIEVE WHAT FITZ DID WELL I CAN BUT MY JAW IS STILL ON THE FLOOR.

Marcus•February 08, 2013 07:26

What i really hated though was that she just had to take down her loyal friends with her. Abby might have had a real shot at a happier life but oh no Olivias needs are higher than hers. She knew that Abby "owed" her.Again i love Scandal its one of the best series out there , i just hate this glorifying of Olivia about how strong and tough she is. To me her actions are selfish and week and her remorse after the fact doesnt face me.I actually cheered a little inside when Fitz shot her down like that in the church. Getting rejected by a killer. Ouch.

Olivia: I don't want normal, and easy, and simple. I want..Edison: What? What do you want, Olivia?Olivia: I want painful, difficult, devastating, life-changing, extraordinary love. Don't you want that, too?Edison: Love is not supposed to be painful or devastating. Love isn't supposed to hurt, Liv.